Monday, March 19

Ages ago when I kicked off my {now sorely-neglected} podcast, one of my first guests was Tracy Benjamin of the food blog Shutterbean. First off, Tracy is one of my favorite people and I love her episode, so go take a listen if you haven’t already! One of the recipes Tracy shared in that episode was for Thai Beef with Basil, a recipe her family loves that utilizes ground beef. I’ve had it on my to-try list ever since and last week it finally happened.

The result? A really great go-to recipe that my kids devoured. All three of them said they want me to make it again and I am definitely planning to. I must admit that I wasn’t sure I was going to love this recipe – serving ground beef over rice just, I don’t know, didn’t capture my interest. Well, I’m glad I tried it anyway as I loved the recipe, too! The carrot slaw is key to why I love this dish so much. I also cooked the rice in coconut milk instead of water, which gave a nice, subtle flavor to the dish overall.

As is my M.O., I changed the recipe, both on purpose and on accident. I am writing my version up below, mostly so I don’t forget what I did but also so I can share it with you, in case you think my changes seem like a good idea. Enjoy!

Add rice, coconut milk and ½ teaspoon salt to a pot. Stir then bring to a boil over high heat. Once boiling, cover pot and reduce heat to low. Cook on low for 45 minutes. Remove from heat and let sit with lid on for 10 additional minutes.

Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add chopped onion and jalapeño and cook until onions have softened and start to turn translucent, about 3-5 minutes.

Add garlic, pressing it through a garlic press, to the pan. Stir then add ground beef. Break beef up, sprinkle evenly with kosher salt, then cook until no longer pink, breaking up the meat as it cooks.

Add beef broth (or bouillon and water, if using) along with the ginger, cumin and cinnamon. Let simmer over low heat for 5-10 minutes, adding ⅔ of the basil a few minutes before serving. (Note: I removed about half of the jalapeño pieces before serving to reduce the heat for my kids.)

In a mixing bowl combine juice from 1 lime, 2 teaspoons oil, soy sauce, sesame oil, sugar, carrots, green onion and the remaining ⅓ of the basil. Stir well to coat veggies in the dressing.

Serve rice topped with beef and carrot slaw. Drizzle some of the dressing from the slaw bowl over the servings and enjoy!

Monday, March 12

Regarding the whole clean eating thing I’ve been doing, I’m going to write a separate post about it instead of updating here in the weekly menu. As I talk to people in real life, I’m finding that even the most reluctant want to give some variation of this a try by the time we are done with our conversation. So, I’ll write a post explaining how I have adjusted my diet and why, along with tons of ideas for food you can actually eat when it feels like everything is off limits. Stay tuned!

Until then, here is my menu for the week, with modifications for my current way of eating in parentheses.

Friday, March 9

Just a quick Show and Tell for you today. Have you heard the buzz around David Chang’s new series Ugly Delicious on Netflix? Think the buzz sounds like hyperbole? It’s not. We love the show. Go and watch.

Image credit: Netflix

That said, let me warn you that if you happen to fall asleep while watching the show, you will probably have a dream (nightmare?) where you finally decide to try crawfish and halfway through eating said crawfish you look at your plate where you have set down the crawfish you were just eating and you see it lying on its back on your plate and then you notice that its little legs and claws are slightly moving. Because it’s alive. You are eating a crawfish that is still alive.

The show, however, is worth the risk of having this dream. I promise. Enjoy! (The yakitori scene in episode 5 almost made me cry!)

*Note for parents: there is some spicy language peppered throughout the show, so probably best viewed without the little around.

Wednesday, March 7

I can’t eat dairy right now (in the process of figuring out some allergy stuff). Therefore, I think the best way to torture myself is to share a recipe that is all about dairy.

This sweet ricotta cream recipe is divine. The sweet ricotta cream is perfect paired with fruit, especially berries, peaches and the like. And while I am one who usually considers nothing to be dessert unless chocolate is involved, this ricotta cream served with fruit is definitely dessert enough for me. That is saying something.

Pair with your favorite fruit to create a rich yet light dessert that everyone will adore!

Author: Jane Maynard

Ingredients

15 ounces whole milk ricotta cheese

8 ounces mascarpone cheese

¼ cup heavy cream

6 tablespoons powdered sugar

3 teaspoons vanilla extract

Fresh fruit of your choice

Instructions

Using a spoon, mix together the ricotta, mascarpone, cream, powdered sugar, and vanilla well in a medium bowl. Some ricotta cheeses are firmer than others - adjust by adding additional cream if the mixture seems too thick.

Pair with sliced or chopped fruit of your choice - berries are wonderful as well as fruits like mango and peaches. Layer the ricotta cream with fruit for a pretty parfait, or simply just scoop everything into a bowl willy nilly. Either way it will be delicious!

Monday, March 5

For those who care about the whole clean eating thing that’s happening with me right now…I went to the doctor and it is definitely food that is causing the trouble. All test results came back super healthy, so I’m dealing with food allergies and sensitivities. So, all in all, good news…but maybe a bit annoying. 😉 I’m still eating crazy healthy and going to slowly experiment with different foods to see what kind of reaction I have (if any) to different things. Quite frankly, when I wrote last week’s post I was feeling so grumpy about what I couldn’t eat and quite bored with my options. Another week in and my mindset is completely different. Eating this way is definitely getting easier (I never in a million years thought I would breathe those words because bread and also food writer). Anyway, this really is a fascinating process and I’ll write more soon. Promise. Until then, let’s get down to business with planning out dinner this week, shall we?

Monday, February 26

I’ve been baking bacon for years. I love the technique because you can cook a lot of bacon at once, it doesn’t get your stove totally greasy, and the bacon comes out great. It’s my favorite. But I didn’t realize until last week that there is a small trick I didn’t know about that makes for perfectly baked bacon.

So, what’s the big secret? This magical trick? The trick is putting the bacon into the oven when it’s cold. That’s right, do not preheat the oven. The cold oven allows the bacon to cook slowly, which makes bacon happy. Now, I’ve been putting my bacon into a preheated oven forever and been totally happy, but since I’ve started not preheating the oven, the bacon is just that much better and more evenly cooked.

Also, putting the bacon into a preheated oven doesn’t add any time to the preparation. After all, you’re going to be preheating the oven no matter what!

I know, an entire blog post about this little tip? Well, that’s how excited I am about it. This discovery is, to me, completely blog post worthy.

Place bacon on a rimmed baking sheet, making sure pieces do not overlap. It's okay if they are right up next to each other, but overlapping is no bueno. (I like to line my baking sheet with foil to help with clean up. This is one of the things I do in the kitchen that makes me feel totally guilty about my environmental impact, but alas, I continue in my terrible ways. It's just so much easier! But you totally can put the bacon directly on the pan.)

Place baking sheet in oven, then turn oven on to 400º F.

Cooking time will depend on how long it takes your oven to heat as well as how thick your bacon is. My oven takes 25 minutes to get to 400º F, and then our super thick bacon from the local grocery store takes about another 20-30 minutes to finish cooking, so my total cook time is usually around 45 minutes. I would start peeking at the bacon to see how it's doing once the oven is fully heated, and then check in on the bacon every 5-10 minutes. When it's getting close to done, 1-2 minutes can make a big difference in how crispy it is. You'll figure out what works best for your taste after a few times cooking it this way.

My other latest trick is to cook the bacon so it is a little bit underdone then storing it in the fridge so we have cooked bacon at our fingertips. To reheat, microwave for 30-90 seconds (depending on your microwave's strength, the thickness of the bacon and how crispy you like it - work in 10-15 second increments to find the magic number) to finish off cooking the bacon and enjoy!

Sunday, February 25

Hey everyone! So, one week ago when I planned my weekly menu it was a regular old week. Except for a horrific rash on my face that had been bothering me for nearly two weeks, that is. I went to the doctor on Tuesday. She told me to essentially eat like a hunter gatherer for 1 week and that I absolutely could not eat sugar, dairy or wheat for the week. So, since Tuesday I have only eaten meats, beans, vegetables, fruits, eggs and brown rice. (I’m allowed to eat oats, too, but just haven’t yet.)

If you know me at all, you know special diets are just not my thing. But I of course listened to the doctor and got on it stat. And I have good news, which is also bad news in my opinion because I love bread so much. This clean eating stuff actually worked. WHAT THE?! Here are my conclusions so far:

This way of eating not only has cleared up the rash (which was terrible, friends…terrible), but my skin overall has never looked this good. I have always struggled with acne, so this is saying something.

I have lost over 6 pounds already. I’m sure some of that was water retention, but every time I step on the scale the number is lower. Note: I am not actively trying to lose weight. Note #2: Don’t worry, I’m not wasting away or anything. 😉

Eating this way was easier than I thought it would be and the food I have been eating has been delicious.

Eating this way requires a lot more food prep. Which just takes a little more planning. But I am also using way more fruits and vegetables, which is fantastic. I took about 30-45 minutes on grocery shopping day to prep a bunch of raw veggies so they are waiting in the fridge for a snack or for cooking.

I AM ALSO BORED TO DEATH WITH FOOD. Really. Today the food boredom is really kicking in. This boredom is manifesting itself in two ways. First, I’m sick of thinking so hard about food. Second, I am just bored with the options. I wish I could eat more things.

I meet again with the doctor in two days to go over test results and to discuss the diet changes and next steps, including reintroducing foods slowly. The reason I am telling you all of this is because this is a food blog and this has been a pretty significant development in my daily experience with food. I won’t write about it all the time, but it was just so fascinating to me that results came so quickly with this diet shift. Crazy stuff.

Okay, so here is this week’s menu, which is one I should be able to enjoy if I have to continue with the food restrictions beyond this Tuesday.

Monday, February 19

Happy President’s Day weekend! We have been taking it easy today. I feel like we needed it after spending Friday at Disneyland, which turned out to be a madhouse that day. SO fun, not complaining, but definitely needed some quiet days after. Now it’s time to take a break from taking it easy to plan out this week’s dinners.

Welcome to This Week for Dinner!

Hi! My name is Jane Maynard and you've landed yourself on my blog, This Week for Dinner™. Every Sunday I share a weekly menu...and count on you to share yours! You'll also find other deliciousness that I hope you'll enjoy!

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